Sunday, July 10, 2011

Painting with a Twist 3

For some reason I never posted my second Painting with a Twist visit, and then I realized when I went to look for a pictures of the experience that my friend Helen and I both forgot our cameras and that's why I neglected to post it. But I do have the painting and here it is:

Today is my 34th birthday and I invited some friends to go back out to Painting with a Twist with me. We had a great time! Carol E. did all of the photography and I think her photographs are art themselves, so I am posting my favorites and letting the pictures do the talking (for once).


So there you have it: "Ode to Britto"

Sunday, April 24, 2011

My First Prayer Shawl

I made this for my prayer partner. She is ten and absolutely fabulous. She chose the colors. I didn't have a pattern, just the freedom of knowing I was making it for a very forgiving recipient who is a seamstress herself and would focus more on time and intent than the perfection of my stitches.

I also want to recommend this book. So far it has taught me triple crochet, granny squares and the fun waves I did at the bottom of the shawl.

It more teaches stitches and techniques and less patterns for specific items, although it has some of that as well.

I love my new hobby!

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Painting with a Twist

March 29th was my cousin's birthday. For her birthday, she wanted to go to a painting studio called Painting with a Twist where they have one painting that they are planning on doing and they walk you through creating that piece.

My cousin and my aunt and I all went and it was a blast!

I particularly enjoyed the way the three pieces we did all came out somewhat different.

Here is my Cobblestone Streets.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Dresses for Twins

One of my husband's old high school buddies and his wife had twins last August. We will be meeting the girls for the first time this weekend, so I wanted to make them a set of those easy-to-make sundresses, like I did for Zoe.

I wasn't sure, though, since we obviously haven't been around the family since the girls were born, whether or not the mother likes dressing the girls alike or not.

Because if she did, these dresses would be perfect.


If she purposefully tries not to dress them alike, though, something like this...

... or this would be better.


There is also a possibility in my mind that she likes for them to match, but not be identical, in which case, I should give her these dresses.

Happily, I was able to do it because I made the dresses reversible. Each one can be worn with the (mostly) solid print out or in. I had tried that before, but the problem was the need to have buttons that would be on the inside (since there are buttons on both sides) and I didn't want anything to poke the baby. At Joanne's, though, I found felt buttons which solved the problem all together.

I also tried do-it-yourself appliques on these. Mostly, I cut out butterflies from the remnants of the "busy" side of the fabric and then did a very close zigzag stitch all around them.

On the one hand, it means that they are more than a little lop-sided. On the other hand, I think it makes them obviously homemade and therefore made with love. :)

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Aspiration

I want to be very clear that I did not make this quilt. It was made by my husband's grandmother and I love it.


She makes such beautiful quilts and has done some really lovely ones for the kids, but this is the first quilt she made for me. She offered me a couple of different ones, but I chose this one for this one panel right here:

I have always had a thing for houses -- I love to look at them in person, I love to look through floorplan books and watch HGTV. I used to draw houses all the time. So this little house in the middle of the quilt is the thing that I looked at felt that this was my quilt.

So I wanted to put pictures of it on my sewing blog because although I didn't design it, make it, or have anything to do with it other than sleeping under it, I consider it an inspiration piece.

Because I had to name my sewing goal, it would be this: To be able to make quilts as nicely as Nana with such unique personal details.